Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

Genre: Historical Fiction

Theme: Love, Family, Loss, Abandonment

Grade Level: 3-5

Curricular Connections: Art (Sketching, Color), Social Studies (Midwestern Farming in the late 1800's), Writing (Personal Narrative)

Taking place in the late 1800's, the story is told by Anna whose mother has died some years ago while giving birth to her younger brother Caleb. Their father Jacob, a midwestern farmer, has advertised for a new wife back east. They received letters from Sarah, a woman from the Maine seacoast, telling them she will come, but they are apprehensive about meeting her. Sarah learns about life on the farm, and she also teaches Anna and Jacob about the ocean. The family has come to love Sarah, but they are afraid she will leave because of how much she misses her home and the ocean. Caleb is afraid Sarah has left when she has gone to town to buy colored pencils so she can attempt to show them the colors of the ocean in her sketches. Sarah reassures them by saying she would miss them more than the ocean.

Sequels: Skylark, Caleb's Story

Classroom Activities:

1. Using colored pencils or chalk, have students create their own pictures of the ocean as described by Sarah, experimenting with the blending of colors.

2. Have students research and orally report to the class the life of a midwestern farmer in the late 1800's. Have each student research a different aspect to share with the rest of the class such as daily chores, equipment/tools, market, family life, education, etc.

3. Have students write a personal narrative about a time when they were homesick, and what they did to overcome it.